Apparatus for coating and slating roofing shingles



' 14 Sheets-Sheet 1 W. G. DUDLESTON Original Filed May 11, 1932 APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES my k\ T Mmwm .2 $1 9 i H. o R A J July 5, 1938.

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APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES Original Filed May 11, 1932 14 Sheets-Sheet 2 July 5, 1938. w. G. DUDLESTON APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES l4 Sheeqs-Sheet 3 Original Filed May 11, i932 y gfuw y 5, 1938- w. G. DUDLESTON I 2,122,739

APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES 4 $hee ts-Sheet 4 July 5, 1938. w. G. DUDLESTON APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES a. a m r .m T w m h 7 J I S a. 0/ 6% m d e e 1 MM FWD M fl 2 .a J w m l II-lll y l MMN a 1 Original Filed O N mw July 5, 1938. w. G. DUDLESTON APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHING-LES l4 Sheets-Sheet 6 Ori Filed w c; DUDLESTON 2,122,739 APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES l4 Sheets-Sheet 7 Original Filed May 11, 1952 Jul 5; 1938.

14 Sheets-Sheet 8 w. G. DUDLESTON Original Filed May 11, 1932 July 5, 1938.

July 5, 1938.

APPARATUS w. G. DUDLESTON 2,122,739 FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES Original Filed May 11, 1932 14 Sheets-Sheet 9 [ZZZ/ e172 E Dad/2.52612 53% Jl'lorneq July 5, 8- w. G. DUDLESTON APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGL Original Filed May 11, 1932 14 Sheets-Sheet l0 172V wad/n 3? 5 jt'forney:

y 1938. w. G.-DUDLESTON 2,122,739

APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES Original Filed May 11, 1952 14 Sheets-Sheet 1 II a July-5, 1938. w. G. DUDLESTON APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES Original Filed May 11, 1952 14 SheetsSheet 12 .Pfttorney.

y 5, 1938. w. G. DUDLESTON 2,122,739

PARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES Original Filed May ll, 1932 14 Sheets-Sheet 13 July 5, 1938. w. G. DUDLESTON APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES 14 sheets-sheet 14 Original Filed'lday 11, 1932 wxw M R m R m Y m m N a. R E0 0 v T m0 m .M

Patented July 5, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE APPARATUS FOR COATING AND SLATING ROOFING SHINGLES chusetts Original application May 11, 1932, Serial No.

Divided and this application July 24,

1935, Serial No. 32,898. Renewed December 8 Claims. (01. 91-43) This'application is a division of my co-pending application Serial No. 610,624, filed May 11, 1932.

This invention relates to improvements in a method and apparatus for coating, slating, cooling and stacking roofing shingles as a continuous operation and refers specifically to a method and apparatus for coating and slating predetermined portions of both faces of roofing shingles while 10 said shingles are continuously carried forwardly with their surfaces disposed in a substantially horizontal plane and their longitudinal edges are maintained parallel to the path of their forward movement. j

The present invention is ideally adapted to the manufacture of thick butt shingles wherein the shingle blank is provided with a waterproofing envelope coating all exposed edges and opposite faces of the shingle, the coating on the exposed face being applied substantially only to that portion to beexposed to weathering. It is unnecessary to go into detail as to the many advantages of thick butt shingles as they are well known in this art.

An important object of my invention resides in a method and means whereby both the upper and lower faces and adjacent edges of shingles may have uniformly and simultaneously applied thereto a waterproofing substance while the shingles 30 are being carried forwardly with faces disposed substantially horizontal and their longitudinal edges are maintained parallel to the path of their forward movement.

Another important object of my invention com- 35, prises a method and apparatus whereby slate, mica, sand and/or any other desired granular material or a material such as talc or the like, may be applied to the coated portions of the shingles while said shingles are being carried for- 40 wardly.

A further important object of my invention comprises a method and means whereby the most efficient ratio of coating to granular material for weathering purposes may be, established and 45 maintained throughout the entire period ofoperation. v 1 .It is another object to apply the waterproofing material as a preformed film or ribbon of desired thickness and/uniform width whereby to secure'a.

50 coating of uniform "thickness and width from edgeto edge of the shingle. I

If multi-tab stripshingles are operatedupon, desired portions of both s'urfaces and edges adjacent to those portions may be coated with a wa- 55 terproofing material and granular or powdered material may be applied to the coated portions as desired. For instance, granular material may be applied to one face of each of the coated shingles whereas the opposite faces may be coated with powdered material, or granular materials of the same or different character may be applied to either or both faces of the coated portions of the shingle. If desired, differently colored granular'material may be applied to the individual tabs and the arrangement may be such that the individual tabs of the strip shingles following each other in sequence may be so colored as to produce strip shingles the tabs of which have varied color combinations. Thus, in stacking said shingles, adjacent shingles in said stack may be of different color combination. This feature of my invention may also be applied to unit shingles,'in which'case adjacent unit shingles of the stack may be provided with granular surfaces of different colors.

In the following detail description my invention is illustrated as being applied to and utilized with a multi-tab strip shingle. It is to be understood, of course, that I do not wish to be limited to the coating of this type of shingle, since unit shingles of a wood, fibre, or felt base as well as multi-tab shingles may be coated, slated, cooled and stacked in accordanc with my invention, as well as continuous webs adapted to be subsequently severed into smaller units.

My invention, briefly described, comprises passing shingle strips or the like forwardly to a conveyor whereby the strips are carried in seriatim in a direction parallel to their longitudinal edges and with their faces disposed in a substantially horizontal plane. If desired, during an initial period of travel of the shingles, portions ofeach of the shingles may be heated to drive moisture therefrom and make the same more receptive for the coating material subsequently to be applied.

' The heating may take place while the shingles are being carried by the conveyor. At a subsequent period of travel of the shingles predetermined portions of the shingles, usually those portions of the shingles which when used are exposed to weathering, are coated with films of coating material, heated asphalt, for instance. The coating. may be applied to the edges, and to portions of either orboth faces of the shingle. The shingles carried forwardly by the conveyor may receive on one or both coated faces a quantity of granular material of desired color or combinations of colors. At a subsequent period of travel the granules may be partially embedded in the coating by pressure andthe excess granular material may be removed, the removed excess being retrieved and reused. Thereafter that portion ofthe shingle carrying the coating and partially embedded granules may be smoothed. During all of the foregoing operations the shingles are moving continuously upon the conveyor. After the smoothing operation the shingles may be removed in seriatim from the conveyor and carried to a second conveyor wherein the shingles may be deposited edgewise in spaced relation with respect to each other. The shingle may thus be carried a predetermined distance at a predetermined speed'to permit cooling and substantial setting of the coating and as a final operation the shingles may be stacked with their coated edges alternately facing in opposite directions. The'shingles are then ready for packing and shipping.

Other important objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent from the accompany- I ing drawings and following detail description.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of the feed end of a machine suitable for carrying out my invention.

Fig. la is a similar view showing a continuation of the machine.

Fig. lb is a view similar to those shown in Figs. 1 and la illustrating particularly the slate hoppers.

7 lg. lo is an elevational view being a continuation of the device as shown in Figs. la and lb.

Fig. id is a side elevational view of the delivery end of the machine. Q

Fig. la is a diagrammatic side elevational view of the shingle strip stacking mechanism.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of that portion of the device shown in Fig. .1.

' Fig. 2a is a top plan view of the device as shown in Fig-1a. 1

Fig. 211 is a top plan view of a portion of the device as shown in Fig. 1d.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on 3-3 of Fig. 1a.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on 44 of Fig. lb.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on 5-5 of Fig. 1c.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on 6-6 of Fig. 1c.

Fig. 7 is a view similar to that shown in Fig. 6 illustrating particularly a different position of the shingle ejecting mechanism.

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on the line 8--8 of Fig. 1c illustrating particularly the vibrating mechanism.

Fig. 9 is a detail view of the shingle ejecting earn. 4

Fig. 10 is a transverse sectional view illustrating particularly the asphalt valve construction.

Fig. 11 is a sectional view taken on the line H--II oiFig. 10.

Fig. 12 is a top plan view illustrating particularly a shingle gripping member.

Fig. 13 is a sectional view taken on the line the line the line Fig. 14 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line l4-l4 of Fig. 13.

Fig. 15 is a detail view of the shingle ejecting mechanism.

16 is a sectional view illustrating particularly the construction of one of the slate valves. Fig. 17 is a detail view illustrating one of the conveyor clamp rollers utilized in conjunction with the device shown in Fig. 2d.-

Fig. 18 is a top plan view of the product of the line 1 the line my invention illustrating particularly the coated and slated tabs. v

Fig. 19 is a sectional view taken on the line 19-49 of Fig. 18.

Fig. 20 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 20-20 of Fig. 1b. v

Fig. 21 is a fragmentary top plan view of the device shown in Fig. 20.

Fig. 22 is a top plan view of a modified form of delivery apparatus.

Fig. 23 is a sectional View taken on the line 23-43 of Fig. 22.

Fig. 24 is a sectional view taken on the line 24- -24 of Fig. 22.

Fig. 25 is a diagrammatic side elevational view of a complete machine embodying one form of the invention with the several parts thereof designated by legends; and

Fig. 25a is a diagrammatic partial plan view of the machine shown in Fig. 25.

Referring in detail to the drawings and particularly to Figs. 1. 2 and 1d, l-l' indicates a pair of I-beams which may serve as the supportingv means for the machine proper. The beams l are mounted upon transversely disposed supporting beams 2 spaced at intervals along the length of the beams I. The beams I are spaced parallel with respect to each other and traverse a substantial portion of the length of the machine.

A standard or support 3 may be mounted upon the upper flange of each of the beams I, the arrangement being such that when the standards 3, normally retained upon the beams l by means of bolts or the like 4, are in approximate position, their exact position may be adjusted by means of set screws 5 and the standards may be brought into accurate transverse alignment with each other. Each of the standards 3 may carry a bearing 6 in which the respective ends of shaft I may be journalled. The shaft 1 may carry spaced sprocket wheels 8 over which sprocket chains 9 may pass. The chains 9 may traverse a substantial portion of the length of the machine and adjacent the opposite ends of the beams I said chains may pass over a similar pair of sprocket wheels l0 mounted upon shaft l I which, in turn, is journalled in bearings l2 carried by standards l3. In traveling forwardly each of the chains 9 may be supported and ride upon the upper face of a track l4 supported at intervals along their lengths by supporting members I5. As will be hereinafter more fully described, the sprocket wheels I!) may be the driving elements whereas the sprocket wheels 8 may run idle.

The chains 9 may carry a plurality of gripping units each of which may comprise a plurality of grippers l6 and a plate I! having an upwardly turned rear edge I8. As will be hereinafter more fully described. the chains 9 are used as conveyors and each gripping unit may be adapted to carry a tab cutshingle IS, the unslotted side of the shingle being held by the grippers l6 and the rear edge of the shingle being in contact with the flange [8.

Each of the grippers l6 may comprise a lower plate 20 and an upper plate 2! hinged together intermediate their lengths at 22. The jaws of the stripping member thus formed are normally maintained in contact with each other under the influence of coiled springs 23 which are retained at their ends upon lugs 24 and 25 respectively mounted upon the lower and upper plates 20 and 2|. Both the upper and lower plates 2| and 20 respectively may be apertured as shown best at 26 and 21 in Fig. 12, the springs 23 being adapted to pass through said apertures. A pair of lugs 28 may be mounted upon the inner face of the lower plate 20 and may normally project through the apertures 26 in the upper plate and may serve as stops for the unslotted side of the shingle. The lower plate 20 may be mounted upon each of the chains 9, as shown at a: and y in Fig. 13, and,may transversely span said chains. The upper plate 2| may be provided with an outwardly extending arm 29 upon which may be mounted a roller 30 which may be freely rotatable about pin 3|. A pair of lugs 32 may be mounted v upon the upper face of the upper plate 2i and spaced from the standards 3. The standard 35 in conjunction with the standard 3 upon the same side. of the machine may carry a bar 31 which, in'turn, may support a cam rail 33 adjustably positioned, by means of bolts 39, beneath the bar 31. The arrangement is such thatupon traveling forwardly around the sprocket wheels 8, the grippers I 6 substantially immediately upon the beginning of their horizontal travel pass adjacent the cam rail 38 and the rollers 30 are brought into contact with the inclined surface 40 of the cam rail. As can readily be seen the arm 29 which carries the roller 30 will be depressed and con- 'sequently the upper plate 2| of the gripper will b moved against the tension of the springs 23 from contact with the lower plate 20. In other words, the jaws of the gripper l6 are opened.

The shingle strip l9 which is adapted to be operated upon by my machine may be constructed 'of felt saturated with asphalt or other impregnating or waterproofing material and subsequently coated with a suitable surfacing material such as talc or the'like, and a coating of relatively fine slate. The strips may be cut into desired lengths,

and may, if desired, be provided with notches or slots 4| forming tabs '42 uponone longitudinal side of the strip. Opposite corners of the strip may be notched as shown best at 43' in Fig. 2

tabs are exposed to the weather.

so that said strips when placed end to end bring the notches of adjacent strips together to form slots equivalent in dimensions to the slots 4|. In laying shingle strips of this type, the strips are disposed in overlapping relationship and only the tabs 4:: are visible and, hence, only said found to be desirable that those portions of the strip which are exposed to weather be additionally coated with asphalt and slate in order to render them more resistant to weather conditions and present a relatively thick butt. Consequently, I have devised a method and, means whereby a base shingle strip such as strips l3 may have tabs 42 and a portion above said tabs coated with asphalt and slate. As will be hereinafter more fully described not only the faces of the tabs 42 are coated but in addition the defining edges of said tabs are coated whereby moisture is prevented from entering the thickness of the tabs and causing the same to buckle, curl, and/or blister when exposed to the elements.

A platform 44 may be mounted upon the supporting members 45 and 46 which, in turn, may be mounted upon supports l and 35 respectively. The plane of the platform 44 may be such as to bring the upper face of said platform into It has been.

coincidence with the upper face of the lower plates 20 of the grippers l6. As has been hereinbefore described, the chains 9 carrying the gripping units are adapted for continuous travel around the wheels 8 and H). The gripping units, comprising the grippers l6 and plate ll; are each adapted to convey one shingle strip IS. The number of gripping units upon the chains 3 and the number of grippers comprising a gripping unit will be dependent upon the length of the shingle strip to be carried. For purposes of example the gripping units are illustrated as having two grippers l6 and a plate I! and are adapted to convey shingle strips of approximately 36 inches in length. It is to be understood, of course, that the length of the shingle strip may be greater or less than 36 inches in which case a greater or lesser number of grippers l6 may be used.

As the chains ,9 travel past the platform 44, shingle strips l9 may be inserted between the plates or jaws of the grippers l6 which, at this period of travel, are opened by the cam rail 38. The shingle strips is may be inserted manually or may be fed between the plates 20 and 2| of the grippers I6 by conventional automatic means connected in synchronized relation with the movement of the chains. Of course, if an automatic feed is to be used the same must be timed with the movement of the chains 9 in order that the shingle strips ill will be fed to the gripping units when the gripping jaws are open. The shingle strips l9 when inserted between the open jaws of the grippers I6 are so positioned between said jaws that the unslotted longitudinal edge of the strip shingle is brought into contact with the stops 28 carried by the lower jaws 26 and the rear edge of the shingle strip is brought strip said strip will be carried along with the chains 9. I

In order to insure the proper positioning of the shingle strip l9 within the grippers l6 before said grippers close, the movement of the shingle strip may be opposed by the frictional resistance, upon the upper surface of the strip. of a retarding means such as brush 4'! carried by the arm 48 which, in turn, may be mounted upon the bar 31, In this manner the rear end of the shingle strip is is squared against the flange I8. A guide 49 may be mounted upon the platform 44 adjacent the path of travel of the shingle strip l9 and may be so positioned upon said platform as to-displace the shingle strip l9 inwardly toward the grippers l6, and in this manner. the longitudinal edge of the shingle strip will be brought into squared relationship with the stops 28. As soon as the chains 9 have traveled a distance sufficient to permit the rollers 30 to break contact with the cam rail 33, the jaws of the grippers close upon the unslotted side of the shingle strip l9 and securely hold said strip properly positioned between the grippers and properly squared with respect to the flange l8.

The shingle strips I9 now being carried forwardly by the chains 9 are supported along their said substance, if of an asphaltic nature, during the coating operation is maintained at a relatively high temperature in order to retain the same in substantially liquid condition. In order to facilitate the subsequent coating operation it may be desirable that the coated portion be preheated. Consequently, during the movement of the shingle strips to the coating device, the tabs may pass over a gas pipe provided with apertures 52, said pipe being connected to a source of combustible gas, not shown. The gas passing out of the apertures 52 and the pipe 5| may be ignited and in this manner the tabs 42 may raised to a desired temperature.

It is to be understood, however, that I do not wish to be limited to the particular means whereby the portions to be coated are preheated inasmuch as said tabs may be preheated by passing the same over a heated plate (not shown), or the faces of the portions to be coated may be exposed to a blast of relatively hot air, or may be preheated by any suitable means. In some instances, the preheating step may be omitted.

A platform 53 may be mounted immediately beneath the path of travel of ,the shingle strips and may be supportedxby members 54 which, in turn, may be mounted upon the upper flanges of the I-beams I. A vat 55 may be mounted upon the platform 53 immediately beneath the path of means, (not shown) it being desirable that the asphalt be maintained in fluid condition. A

' steam jacketed pipe 51 may connect into the tank 56 at the bottom thereof and may terminate in asphalt distributing nozzle. 58.

, ,Tfhej, nozzle 58 may comprise a steam jacketed housing 55 of substantially cylindrical shape. As a'feature of the invention, the housing is provided with .a. relatively. elongated aperture 60 at its lower portion through which the asphalt flows tion. It can readily be seen that when the axisof the V-shaped aperture coincides with the longitudinal axis of the elongated slot 60, asphalt will pass from the tank .55 through the aperture 60 in the form or" a ribbon. A gate 63 may be slidably positioned upon the lower face of the nozzle 58 and may be adapted to change the effective cross section of the opening 60. In this manner the width of the stream and the amount of asphalt being discharged through the aperture 60 may be readily controlled. The nozzle 58 is so positioned with respect to the path of travel of the shingle strips l9 asto direct a stream of asphalt upon the tabs 42 in the form of a ribbon so as to secure a coating of uniform width and thickness from front edge to rear edge, it having been found that a round nozzle was not as satisfactory.

As another feature of my invention I contemplate discharging an excess quantity of asphalt from the tank 56 to the upper surfaces ofthe tabs 52 so that said excess in draining from the upper surfaces of said. tabs passes over and coats the defining edges of the tabs. When the usual tab cut shingle strips are exposed to weather, it has been found that moisture enters the tabs through the defining edges thereof and consequently causes said tabs to buckle, curl and/or blister. Therefore, it is of importance to so seal these defining edges with asphalt as to make them impervious to moisture. Thus, by discharging an excessquantity of asphalt upon the upper surfaces of the tabs 42, the asphalt in draining passes over said defining edges and seals the same.

That portion of the asphalt which drains from the tabs 42 is caught by the vat 55. An outlet pipe 64 may extend upwardly from the bottom of the vat 55 and may be adapted to maintain a predetermined level of asphalt within said vat. The pipe 64 may be connected to the steam jacketed connection 65 which, in turn, joins the steam jacket pipe 66 being connected by means of coupling 61 to the steam jacketed pump 66. The discharge of said pump is connected by means of steam jacketed pipes 69, I0 and "H to the tank 56 and, hence, that portion of the asphalt which passes through the .pipe 54 is forced by means of.

pump 68 back to the bulk supply of asphalt within the tank 56.

A T coupling ?0' may be interposed in pipe and steam jacketed pipe ll may connect into said coupling. A valve 12' may be interposed pipe H and may be adapted to, control the introduction of waterproofing material from a .suitable source of supply, not shown. If desired, in the event of stoppage of the machine, the material within tank 56 may be drained therefrom to vat 55 and pumped from said vat through pipe I2 to the source of supply. In this event, valve 13' interposed in pipe I0 may be closed.

1 A frarne I2 may be mounted upon the platform 53 adjacent the vat 55 and is adapted to serve as a support for rolls l3 and 14 which, if desired,

may be geared together by means of spur gears and 16. The lower roll I3 is so mounted with respect to the vat 55 that its periphery passes through the asphalt contained in said vat and, consequently, upon rotation of said lower roll a portion of. said asphalt is carried as a film upon the surface of said roll. The rolls l3 and 14 are somounted with respect to the asphalt nozzle 58 as to operate upon the tab portions 42 subsequent to the deposition of asphalt upon the upper surface of said tab portion. Previous to the passage of the tabs 42 between the rolls I3 and 14, the tabs 42 leave the supporting rods 56. Consequently, upon the passage of the tabs between said rolls, the lower surface of said tabs comes into-contact with the periphery of the rotating lower roll 13 and a film of asphalt is applied to said lower surfaces.

The thickness of. the film carried by the lower roll 13 and, hence, the thickness of the film applied to the lower surface of the tab portion of the shingle, may be controlled by an adjustably positioned doctor 13 positioned upon shaft 14' which, in turn, may be mounted upon the supports 12 and 260.

If desired the upper roll 14 may function merely as a scraper or doctor roll and in order to form a smooth surface of asphalt upon the upper surfaces of the tabs 42, it is preferable that said upper roll 14 is maintained stationary and merely serves to control the thicknessv of the film.

In order to prevent the asphalt discharging from the nozzle 58 from spreading and coating more of. the upper surface of the shingle strip than is desired, and in order to confine the coating to the desired portion of said surface, a sepa rating member or gauge 11 may be mounted adjacent the rolls I8 and I4 with the plane of its face parallel to the direction of travel of the shingle strips. As a feature of my invention, I may heat said separating member or gauge by means of an electrical heater I8 which may be connected to a source of electricity, not shown, by means of connections I9. In this manner the asphalt coming into contact with the separator II will not tend to solidify and consequently a clear line of demarcation between the coated and uncoated portion of the shingle will be formed.

It may be found desirable to apply external heat to the vat 55 in which case an electrical heating element or a plurality thereof, not shown,

may be. mounted upon the bottom of the vat 55. A tray or apron 88 may be mounted at one end upon the upper edge of the vat 55 and may, in the event of the drain pipe 64 becoming clogged or inoperative, conduct the excess asphalt within the vat 55 to a suitable receptacle, not shown.

The pump 88 which circulates the asphalt from the vat 55 to the tank 58 may be actuated by means of a motor 8I which may be geared by means of spur gears 82 and 83 to the pump 88. However, it is to be understood that the pump may be driven from the main drive of. the i'nachine or by any suitable prime mover.

Thequantity of asphalt being discharged from the nozzle 58 in addition to being controlled by the member 83, may be controlled by the rotation of the drum IiI which may be operated by handle 84. The upper roll I4 may be moved towards or away from the lower roll I3 by actuating the control screw 85 and, hence, the thickness of the film of asphalt upon the upper surface of the shingle strip may be controlled.

As the chains 9 travel forwardly the coated tabs upon leaving the rolls I3 and I4 are supported upon wires 86 which are maintained under relatively high tension. It can readily be seen that inasmuch as the lower surfaces of. said tabs carry films of relatively liquid asphalt, said tabs cannot be permitted to contact a fiat surface. Consequently by theprovision of the wires 86'the films upon the lower surfaces of the tabs are not materially disturbed during movement of the tabs along the'wires.

If desired,- the wires 88 may comprise material of relatively high electrical resistance and an electric current may be passed therethrough in order to heat the same. undesired formation of waterproofing material from accumulating upon the wires. It may be desired to supplant the wires 86 by heated pipes, for instance, steam pipes provided with relatively thin fins (not shown) over the heated edges of which the coated portions of the shingle may be carried. Another manner of supporting. the coated shingle may comprise an endless mechanical conveyor belt (not shown) which may be positioned beneath the path of travel of the coated portion of the shingle and which may be provided with a plurality of upwardly projecting quills or pins upon the points of which the coated shingles may ride. Many other ways of supporting said coated shingles may suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and, hence, I do not wish to be limited to the precise structure shown and described.

Belt 8'! may pass around pulley 88 mounted beneath'the path of travel of the shingle strip, said belt being adapted to travel in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1b. 4 hopper 89 may be disposed immediately above. the pulley This may prevent an 98 and has an opening 98- at its lower end, the hopper 89 being adapted to be filled with crushed slate or other surfacing material. The supply of slate may be replenished by meansof the supply pipe 9I which may convey the slate from a main bulk supply container 92 to the hopper 89, said pipe discharging into said hopper at a point to the side of the path of travel of the shingle strip.

As the belt 81 travels over the pulley88, a relatively thin film of granular slate is deposited upon the upper surface of the belt, the arrangement being such that during? movement of the belt, slate will be removed from the hopp r 89 whereas, when the belt remains stationary, no slate will discharge from the hopper. The belt then passes gradually upwardly at an angle sufficiently small so that the slate will not move upon the belt until said belt passes over pulley 93, journalled immediately beneath the path of travel of the tabs 42 of the shingle strips I9. In other words, the angle is less than the angle of slip for the material used. At this period of travel the tabs of the shingle strips carried by the gripping units come into contact and are supported upon their lower sides by the belt 81, the film of granular material being interposed between the upper surface of the belt and the lower surfaces of the tabs. Hence, said tabs will be prevented from adhering to the belt and at the same time inasmuch as the asphalt upon the lower surface of the belt at this period is relatively tacky, a quantity of the slate granules will adhere to the asphalt film.

To firmly embed the granules carried by the belt 8'! in the film of waterproofing material upon the lower surfaces of the coated tabs, I may provide a belt vibrating mechanism, shown in detail in Figs. 28 and 21. The mechanism 85' may comprise motor 86' mounted upon platform 81' adjacent the path of travel of belt 81. An arm 88' may be eccentrically mounted upon the shaft 89' of motor 88' and may, carry at its outer end plate 98' provided with flanged ends 9|. The belt 81 is adapted to travel over plate 98' between flanges 8| and said plate is supported beneath by the .double pivoted link 92 which, in turn, may be mounted upon support 93'.

It can readily be seen that as belt 81 travels forwardly and motor 86' is energized, said belt may be vibrated transversely by plate 98 and the granules upon the surface of the belt may be worked into the fllm of waterproofing material upon the lower face of the tabs.

A frame 94 may be adapted to form a superstructure above the path of travel of the shingle strip and may be adapted to support a plurality of slate hoppers 95, 98, 91, 98 and 99, each of said hoppers being provided with a distributin valve I88 which may comprise a hollow body I8I within which drum I82 is adapted to rotate. The lower side of the body I8I may be provided with an elongated aperture I83 which may be controlled by member I84, slidably mounted upon the lower surface of said body. The drum I82 may be provided with an elongated V shaped sectioned aperture I85 which is adapted to serve as a connecting medium between the aperture I83 and the body of the hopper. Of .course, it is to be understood that any number of slate hoppers may be utilized.

Upon forward travel ofthe chains 9, the shingle strip may be brought to such a position that the forward end of each of the tabs is positioned immediately beneath the aperture I83 of the valves I at the lower ends of the hoppers 9%, 96 and 95. When such position is reached, the drums I02 of the valves which are connected to levers I06 may be actuated by links I01 which, in turn, are connected tolevers I08 pivotally mounted at I09 upon the upright members of the frame 94. A roller IIO may be carried intermediate the length of the levers I08 and may be adapted to ride upon the surfaces of cams III, said rollers being normally maintained in contact with said cams by means of springs I I2 connected at their ends to the levers I08 and to frame members II3. As the flat portions N4 of the cams mountedupon shaft I I5 come into contact with the rollers IIO, levers I08 are depressed by means of springs H2 and the drums I02 are rotated so as to bring the axes of the slots I05 into coincidence with the axes of the apertures I03, and consequently slate II6 contained within the hoppers 91, 96 and 95, will be discharged through the apertures I03 onto the upper surfaces of the tabs 42, the discharge of the three hoppers taking place simultaneously as the for- Ward edges of the tabs upon the shingle strip pass beneath the hoppers.

When the rear edges of each of the tabs of the shingle strip pass beneath the center line of the hoppers 91, 96 and 95, the raised portions of the cams III will come into contact with the rollers H0 and consequently levers I06 will be raised and drums I02 will be so rotated as to close the apertures I03.

As a feature of my invention the valves I00 are so designed as to permit instantaneous discharge of slate which is necessitated by the action of the cams III correlated as to speed with the movement of the shingle strips. vision of the V-sectioned apertures I05, immediately upon rotation of the drums I02 takingplace and communication established between the apertures I05 and apertures I03, a stream of slate will be discharged from the valves I00, inasmuch .as an available supply of slate is always maintained within the apertures I05 and no lag exists between the movement of the drums I02 and the discharge of the slate.

It can readily be seen that inasmuch as the slate is deposited upon each of the tabs from an independent source, my invention lends itself to the formation of shingle strips having multicolored tabs. For instance, it is possible to discharge a green tinted slate from the hopper 91, a blue tinted slate from the hopper 96, and a red tinted slate from the hopper 95. Consequently, the resulting shingle will have its first tab, taken in the direction of passage of the shingle, colored green whereas the second tab will be blue and the third tab red and due to the instantaneous operation of the valves I00, said tinted slate granules will not overlap due to sluggish operation of the valves I02.

Of course it is to be understood that the slate granules deposited upon the lower faces of the tabs 42 may be of one fixed color. It is also to be understood that the color schemes of the respective shingle strips may be varied and by pro vision of auxiliary hoppers 98 and 99 and the suitable cam mechanisms, various color combinations can be obtained, and various quantities of slate may be deposited during the continuous operation of the machine. In addition, it may be desirable to reverse the order in which the colors appear upon the tabs of a shingle strip, for instance, in the example stated above, hopper 91 contained greentinted granules, hopper 96 By the DIO- contained blue tinted granules, and hopper 95 contained red tinted granules; The shingle strip produced by utilizing these hoppers would appear when observed as having a green tinted tab, a blue tinted tab and a red tinted tab in the order named. If the order was desired to be reversed, the auxiliary hopper 99 may contain red-tinted granules and hopper 98 may contain blue tinted granules. In this event hoppers 96 and 95 may be rendered inoperative and the cams III may be so adjusted as to actuate the valves I00 when the shingle strip is beneath the hoppers 99, 98 and 91. A shingle produced by utilizing these three hoppers would present tabs having red, blue and green colors in the order named which, as can readily be seen, is just the opposite to those produced by the hoppers 91, 96 and 95.

If desired, six hoppers (not shown) similar to hoppers 95, 96, 91, 98 and 99 may be provided which may operate in units of threes, that is, three hoppers may be operated together. By this arrangement'only one cam III may be provided and arms I06 of each of the hopper valves I00 may be linked together in units of three. When it is desired to operate one unit of three hoppers, the remaining three hopper valve arms may be disconnected and when the granule supply of the first operated units is exhausted, the second unit maybe operated and the first unit disconnected. It is to be understood, of course, that any number of hoppers may be utilized and any combinadischarge simultaneously or any predetermined hopper may discharge upon any predetermined tab. In this manner shingles may be produced having varied color combinations and a shingle receiving granular material may be of a color combination which may be different from that of the shingle immediately preceding and/or following. Of course, I do not wish to be limited by the above mentioned examples inasmuch as they are given merely to indicate the flexibility of operation of the device.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1c and 5, uprights II1 may be mounted upon the upper surfaces of each of the I-beams I and may be adapted to support angle irons II8 which may be disposed parallel to the I-beams I. A bar 9 may be mounted at each of its ends upon the angle members H8 at opposite sides of the machine and may be adapted to carry supporting members I20 which, in turn, are provided with bearings I2I in which the ends of shaft I22 are journalled. The shaft I22 may carry pulley wheel I23 over which belt 81 may travel at its forward extremity. Bearings I24 may be mounted upon each of the angle irons II8 intermediate their length and may serve as journals of the shaft I25, which may carry pulley wheel I26. The belt 81 upon passing over the periphery of the pulley I 23 may travel around a portion of the peripheral surface of the pulley I 26, said latter pulley performing the double function of a guide pulley and a belt tightener. As will be clear to any one skilled in the art, the belt 81 may be tightened or loosened by sliding the bearings I24 forwardly or backwardly along the length of the angle iron II9. This slidable movement may be accommodated by means of slots, not shown; provided in the supporting plates of the bearings I24. The belt 01 upon passing over the surface of the pulley I26 returns to the pulley 68. 

